Twisting The Knife
by TheEndsongAbyssXV
Summary: Nine months after the devastating ordeal of "The Cutter", the lives of Detectives Ace, Zoro, and ME's Law and Tré are once again dragged into a world of violence and death. But this time, someone won't make it back alive...(AU. Zoro/OC, Law/OC, Smoker/OC) (Rated M for gore, violence and suggestive themes.)
1. Chapter 1

...

(I was an attending ME on this scene, this actually happened, and most of the dialogue happened.)

...

The flies were already swarming. Three hours on the hot pavement of summer in Tokyo had baked the pulverized flesh, releasing the chemical equivalent of a dinner bell, and the air was now alive with buzzing, whizzing flies. Though what remained of the torso was now covered with a sheet, there was still much exposed tissue for scavengers to feast on. Bits of gray matter Nd other identifiable parts were dispersed in a radius of thirty feet. A skull fragment had landed in a second-story flower box, and clumps of bloodied muscle had adhered to the nearby cars.

Detective Roronoa Zoro had always possessed a strong stomach, but even he had to pause, eyes closed, fists clenched, angry at himself for this moment of weakness. His partner, Detective Portgaz D. Ace, had already tossed up his breakfast in humiliating view of the public, and was currently sitting in a police cruiser with the AC cranked on. Zoro could not afford to lose against nausea, but he had succumbed to the sweltering heat, and had removed his blazer. He was assaulted on all fronts, the smells, the flies, and the humidity.

Loud voices drew his attention and Zoro looked to the right to see the Medical Examiners walking over. Newly promoted lead ME Trafalgar Law was walking towards him with his usual air of "I'm a badass, fear me", while his assistant Tré Suijouki shuffled behind him, yawning and rubbing her eyes.

"Late night, doc?" Zoro asked the girl, and Tré nodded, her eyes widening a little as she took in the scene.

"Yeah-" she stifled a yawn behind her hand. "Went to bed at three-fortyfive or so-"

"Because you wanted to watch the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers movie." Law interjected. The dark haired man looked up as an angry voice rang out.

"I've got a sales conference, okay, and I'm an hour late already! Now you've got you're fucking police tape wrapped all around my car and you're saying I can't drive it?"

Head director Smoker was standing in front of a civilian who apparently wasn't too thrilled about the accident.

"It's a crime scene." Smoker said. "Did you see anything, or hear something?"

"Same thing everyone else did." The man replied.

"A loud bang."

"Yeah, at seven-thirty. I was just getting outta the shower. Looks out the window, there he was. Asshole driver came tearing around the corner like a bat out of hell."

Smoker sighed. He hated dealing with hit-and-runs. With a groan, he dismissed the other man and walked up to the patrol cars. Zoro rose an eyebrow.

"What's up?"

"Let the rookies handle this, you all take that call from Shinjuku." He ordered, and Zoro walked off to his car, while Law rolled his eyes.

"There was absolutely no point in our being here, then?"

Smoker pulled a cigar out of his jacket and lit it. "Not really, but fucking with you this early put a smile on my face."

Tré stalked back to her car and slammed the door as Law flipped off their newly appointed boss. Ever since Rob Lucci had lost his goddamn mind and went around gutting foreigners, Smoker had taken over, and they'd eventually found the bastard in a rundown shack in the middle of the Minamori forest a few miles out of Tokyo's city limits. He was now held in a solitary cell on the island prison of Kurata.

Tré stuck her key into the ignition and stopped for a moment, lifting her shirt up to reveal the scar on her lower abdomen where Lucci had tried to cut out the essential part of her anatomy that made her female. Her eyes grew solemn and she frowned at the memories. She still had nightmares, would wake up screaming, tears pouring down her face.

She blinked rapidly and looked up to see tapping at her window.

"What?" She asked as she rolled it down.

Law's eyes gave her a once-over and then sighed. "Go home."

Tré shook her head repeatedly. Law had handled the ordeal better than she was, and the emotional toll it took on her ruined her focus.

"I'm fine-"

Law opened the door and forced her into the passenger side. "Then why are you crying?" Tré frowned, having not realized this fact. She looked at Law's hands. Where thick scars knotted his palms.

"Don't think of them as victimizing injuries." He put the car in drive and gunned it, following after Zoro and Ace. "That's a battle scar, woman. You're a tiger who earned her goddamn stripes."

...

The Shinjuku patrolman posted in front of the house didn't recognize Ace or Zoro and stopped the two at the street entrance, but before he could question them, Captain Tashigi pulled them through.

"How many victims?" Ace asked.

"One. They're getting ready to move him out now."

The two were led inside of a neighborhood where birds chirped and the air smelled like sweet flowers. The landscaping was immaculate, and the houses were something out a 17th century Victorian.

"So this is where the upper-class part of Tokyo resides." Ace grumbled. The richest member in the department was Tré, but her lodgings was a simple penthouse in Tokyo, down the street from the office. She actually had enough room for seven people, and more often than not, friends from work would stay with the girl.

Ace dimly wondered when the next monthly 80's movie marathon was, but his attention was directed to the door as Law and Tré came through.

"What've you got?" Law asked.

Zoro and the others followed them into a hallway adorned with pictures. Framed black and white photographs; but not of family poses, stark images of a female in nude, the faces obscured. A woman embracing a tree, smooth skin pressed against rough bark. A seated woman bent forward, long hair cascading over her chest.

The patrolman grimaced. "Looks like they had some kinky shit going on."

Tré stares at the woman's finely toned body. "I don't think it's kinky at all, these are beautiful pictures."

Law forced her to walk, "Focus on the case."

They all stopped at the threshold to the living room, eyes glued to the blood. A comet's tail of arterial spray had shot across the wall and trickled down in ribbons. And the source, Mr. Nobuo Tanaka, sat with his back propped against the wall, wrists bound in front of him, ankles bound with duct tape. He was clad solely in his boxers, and his hair was mussed as though he'd been sleeping.

"Rigor mortis is set." Law examined the slash mark across his throat; a slash that had gone deep enough to sever the artery and cause the man to drown in his own blood. He was already familiar with such a wound. The artery spurting, lungs filling up, the victim aspirating through the severed windpipe. "Of estimate death between...midnight and three AM."

"Okay, let's get him away from the wall," Tré said, and the two morgue attendants obeyed, laying out the body on a disposable sheet. Rigor Morris had stiffened the corpse into a 90-degree angle, and the attendants were figuring out how to move the body.

"What the head! It's slipping!" One of then cried.

"Aw, Christ." The other groaned.

Zoro suddenly focused on a chip of white lying on the floor where the body had been sitting. He crouched down and picked up what appeared to be a tiny shard of china.

"Broken teacup." Tashigi said. "There was a teacup and saucer beside him, like it fell off his lap."

"Symbolic artifact?" Law asked, pulling of his latex gloves and tossing them into a rubbish bin.

Tré grimaced. "Ritual tea-party for the dead guy."

"Where's the wife?" Ace asked, noting the gold band on the victim's finger.

"Gone." Tashigi said.

"Abduction?" Ace asked.

Tré frowned. The victim had broad shoulders, and washboard abs. So he easily could have fought off an attacker, but here he was, head bowed, throat slashed.

/The killer props him up, then cuts his throat. Like an execution. Then there's the woman...he kills the husband, but what does he do with the wife?/ She stared at the remains of the teacup, the significance blowing through her like an icy wind.

"It's too bright in here, we need Luma-lite." She said.

Law rose an eyebrow. "What are you thinking of?"

Tré seemed more animated, moving around the room, and Ace got out of the smaller girl's way. She turned to the wall.

"He was sitting there when he died. Our unknown subject dragged him from bed, propped him against that wall, made him face the center of the room."

Zoro nodded. "Okay."

Law caught on to where she was going. "Why was he placed there? Why go through all that trouble while the victim is alive? There was a reason."

Ace was confused. "What reason?"

At last, Zoro's face registered appalled comprehension. He stared at the wall, where Mr. Tanaka had sat; an audience of one in a theater of horror.

"Oh, God." Tashigi's eyes flared. "Mrs. Tanaka."


	2. Chapter 2

(NOTE: Tré is pronounced "Tray" and "Tray-zon", and Tierney is pronounced "tear" as in crying tear, and "knee". Also! Tré/Tierney/Ashford/Ayane are half Japanese, half English, and both Tierney and Ashford have English accents.)

...

All the lights had been turned off inside the Tanaka house as everyone reconvened at 8:00PM. The forensics team had a plan to search the whole establishment for particulates, and they'd have an easier job doing it at night. Tré had been on a mission when she started cooking up ideas on what had happens to the wife, and every time she opened her mouth, Smoker would reject an idea, and it wasn't until Law slammed the door in his boss's face and locked it that they were actually able to work. Tré's double major was forensic analysis and anatomy, so the woman had pull in both the morgue and the field, and right now, her team (consisting of lower ranked lab assistants and investigators) were going over every plausible senario.

"We can run the particulates through Mass Spec. and we should get a hit if my theory is right..." She kept talking to herself, and Law watched as Smoker started taking to Zoro outside of the room. He moved out of the way suddenly as Tré darted around him, murmuring to herself.

/She's taking this personally. The similarities are eerie; the duct tape, the slash against the throat./ "Tré, take a deep breath and chill out."

Indigo-hued eyes turned to meet his, and Tré suddenly perked up as the door opened as a man stepped through.

"Oh, good, you're here!" She beamed and dragged him over. The young man had a slim athletic build, his dark hair spiked gently. He was wearing black jeans and Doc Martens with a wife-beater and a camouflage jacket. As he bent down to pick up a flashlight, his diamond earring glinted in the light.

A new set of headlights broke through the living room window and Ace twitched as another man and a woman stepped out.

"Here we go." He curse under his breath.

"Who is it?" Law mouthed.

"Hina and Tierney." Zoro answered.

"What about Tierney?" Tre's older brothers both worked in the same department as she did, and the girl looked up as a tall, sandy-blond haired man came in. Tierney was about two hours older than Tré, a fact the man exploited mercilessly, but he and Ashford kept an eye on their sister and helped her out when she needed it.

But Tierney outranked everyone, even Smoker. "Special circumstances", the lead of the CIA had said, because Smoker didn't want the position, and Hina didn't qualify because she drank too much and was reckless.

"Evenin', baby sister." Tierney gave a cheery wave to the woman, and the two 23-year-olds had an old fashioned stare down for a moment. "I brought everything, what'cha need?"

Zoro looked out at the van the other man had driven. Both Tierney and Ashford were CTA's, or Criminal Technology Agents, and were often called when unseen particulates needed to be found. A few random patrolmen were carting the lamps and other lighting equipment into the house, and both Tashigi and Smoker were ordering civilians and nonessential personnel off the premises.

Ashford knelt down to a box and Teieney leaned against his twin, and Tré stared at the blood spatters arcing against the wall.

"I brought the new Mini-Crimscope 400," Ashford said with a smile, his brown eyes shining with excitement. "Four hundred watt lamps, three times brighter than the old GE three-fifty watt. Most intense light source we ever worked with. This thing's brighter than a bloody Xenon." Tierney grabbed some protective goggles and handed them out to Ace, Zoro, Law, Tré, Smoker and Tashigi.

The blood had lost it's emotional impact. While Ashford set up his equipment, plugging in the power strip and readying the tripod and camera, Zoro found his gaze drawn to the wall. No amount of scrubbing would erase that silent testimony to violence. The biochemical traces would always remain in a ghostly imprint.

But it wasn't blood they sought tonight. They were searching for something much harder to detect; something that required an alternate light source that was intense enough to reveal what was currently invisible to the naked eye.

"We need it dark." Tré said. "Dark as we can get."

Tashigi turned to the door and and told beyond to cut the cars off, and after a moment, they were engulfed in blackness, except for the single lamp in the corner that Ace was prepared to turn off. The street lights were farther away and didn't interfere, and everyone positioned their goggles so the UV rays would blast their eyes.

"So which area are we focusing on, love?" Tierney asked, and Tré motioned to the while room.

"Start at that end, where the victim was found, and then move outward from there."

Ashford glanced around. "You've a got a beige rug there, and it's going to fluoresce, and so is that white couch."

Tré's voice adopted a tone of command. "Just do it."

"Yes, ma'am." Ashford smiled and Ace hit the lights.

The Crimescope's light came on, casting the room in an eerie blue glow, throwing shapes into perspective. The couch and rug lit up like the moon, and the dried blood glowed silver.

"Kind of pretty, isn't it?" Tierney said.

"What is that?" Zoro asked, pointing to the blood. There were odd streaks in some places.

"Hair that adhered to the blood." Law explained. "Shine it on the floor next."

Ashford aimed the lens downward, the beam slashing across the carpet, which lit up like high beams on a truck. Law stared at the floor with a slightly bewildered expression. Framed by the background fluorescence of the carpet fibers, there was a tiny blemish, smaller than a dime.

Tré and Zoro noticed it too.

"Bring the scope over here." Zoro said, pointing. Ashford panned it around the coffee table. Tierney was walking up the stairs, admiring the stained glass ceiling, and Smoker was busy yelling from outside.

Blue-ish light bathed the rug, Zoro's hand a black silhouette against the bright background. "There. What is that?"

Ashford looked puzzled. "A stain of some kind. I need to take a photo of that."

"But it's a dark spot," Ace looked at the other two men. "I thought we were looking for something that fluoresces?"

Law spoke next: "When the background is highly fluorescent, things like fluids and fibers can appear dark because they don't have a high UV wavelength. The stain could be anything-"

"The lab'll have to confirm it." Tré added, eyes narrowed. "There's one more trick we can try." She gae her brother a knowing look and Ashford smiled.

"You got it, love." He flipped a switch on the UV lamp and focused the lens on the floor again. "This'll be really cool if it works."

The room went pitch black, except for one bright spot at their feet.

"It's phosphorescence. It's got a much shorter wavelength than the other particulates."

Tré felt bile rise in her throat as the significance of that stain registered and she turned away as the lights came on. She couldn't look at it without feeling a sense of revulsion.

Law came to the same conclusion: "It's semen." He didn't a confirmation. He knew the ordeal that the couple had gone through, why the husband had been restrained.

"He drags them from the bed, binds the man's wrists and mouth so he can't fight back or make noise. Sat him there against the wall. An audience of one." His voice dropped an octave. "And he's fully aware of what the unsub is about to do."

"He wants him to watch." Ace sounded disgusted.

Law nodded. /You took her on the rug, claimed her in full view of her husband, who could merely shut his eyes, but he'd hear all of it. He can't fight back, protect his wife. And to alert you of his struggles, as an early wanting system, you place the tea cup in his lap. It'll clatter to the floor f he manages to stand./

Was killing the husband part of the pleasure? Being dominate over both victims?

/You bind them and cut the throat just like Lucci used to do./ Law glanced at Tré, who was talking to Tashigi and Smoker. /Bit your aren't finished yet. That's why you take the woman./

...

Tré walked outside. Where a rare summer breeze shifted trough the air, and she watched as her brother packed up their supplies, and other cops began leaving. The similarities bothered her, but she knew that Lucci was in prison, and was never getting out.

The dread was as thick as nausea in her stomach and she took several deep breaths.

"You alright, little sister?" Tierney walked over to her, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah," she waved a hand dismissively. "Just dizzy."

"Roronoa an Portgaz say that they're following every lead that comes in." Law said, walking over to them.

"I wonder if she's even alive." Ashford said.

"I know he has." Tré said quietly.

"And what makes you say that, Trézhon?" Tierney asked.

Tré gave Law a significant look. "It's exactly what Lucci would have done."


	3. Chapter 3

"Come onnnnnnnnnnn, Tré, pleeeeeeeaaaaaasssssseeeee?" Vivian, one of the lab techs was rocking back and forth on her heels, her large brown eyes in full puppy-mode.

"You want to go clubbing?" Tré took her lab coat off and tucked her laptop into its bag. "I don't know, V, I'm worn out, and I have a whole season of Dexter to catch up on before the premier on the 20th!"

Law's voice echoed from the other side of the room where he was throwing a large tennis ball against the wall. "You wanted to finish watching House."

"Hugh Laurie is so attractive for his age." Vivian said with a grin.

"Eh. He greatly amuses me with his cynical personality."

Another lab tech laughed. "He reminds me of you, boss." He said to Law and Tré bit her lip to avoid bursting into laughter.

"He'd hit people with the cane." She said between giggles.

"House hit people." Vivian said. "Law would beat them." Said man ignored the jibes as continued to sort through medical supplies.

"Smoker is Cuddy." Penguin, one f the techs said with a smile.

"Ew. Smoker in a pencil skirt and blouse." Replied Shachi.

Law visibly twitched at the comparison. "Smoker-ya needs to-" his voice trailed off as he insulted his boss quietly.

Over the course of an hour, all of the medical examiners staff came and cleaned up, organized the offices and eventually just waited for 11 o' clock to arrive. Law was sitting on his desk with a medical textbook in his hands, and Tré hopped up to sit beside him.

"Really?" She knew exactly what was about to happen and she was too tired. "But it's so late-"

"The children must learn." Law said. "You don't have to play, but they do."

Vivian frowned. "You're not quizzing us are you?" Groans echoed from all around.

"Be silent." (A chorus of "yes sir" was heard) Law ordered and people started sitting down, bracing themselves for the horror about to befall them.

...

Ace walked into his house and practically ran to the shower before his brothers got back. Sabo was stopping to pick up a pizza, and Luffy was supposedly at a friend's house for a few hours.

He locked the bathroom door and shoved his clothes underneath as a stopping mechanism to keep his siblings out if they attempted to bust in while he was bathing.

(I have eleven siblings, and I've learned to shower in under 10 minutes, and this has helped me greatly when the quints decide to barge in. And yes, there are quintuplets. I'm the middle of the triplets. They're 12 years old. Three boys, two girls. From age it's Bobby (34), Darien (24), Tierney, Me and Ashford (22), Francesca (16), and then Zack, Riley, Terra, Zephyr and Lola (12). We're all adopted except Bobby.)

He cranked in the water, and did the whole scrub, rinse, repeat thing before getting out some ten minutes later, just as the door was opening.

"Ace!" Luffy's voice called from downstairs, and Ace darted into his bedroom, locked the door, and blocked it with a chair (not that it would work, but it did slow the other man down).

"What?" Ace called back as he pulled a shirt over his head.

Luffy's voice was louder. "Your phone is ringing!"

"Fuck-!" Ace tripped over his duffle bag and ran down the stairs, where his younger brother held out the phone.

Ace stared at the name for a second. /Why is Smoker calling me?/ He shushed Luffy and answered the cell.

"Portgaz."

Smoker's voice was drowned out by car honks and cursing. "Did you get the files from the ME's office?"

Ace's face fell. "No..."

"Go get them as review them! You need to memorize the notes, because this case is taking precedence over all others. That's an order!" The line went dead and Ace groaned before collapsing onto the couch.

"Do you have go back to work?" Luffy asked with a pout. Ace ruffled his brother's hair with an affectionate smirk.

"Yeah."

Luffy: (TwT) *pouts*

...

Ran looked up as Law called on her. She was busy hacking into Smoker's personal email account, and she'd come to the lab to hang out with Tré, not play 21 Questions with Law.

"Miss Ran, kindly explain to the children why no one likes Smoker." The sable-haired man said, smirking at the crowd of his underlings.

"Why do you call them children? They're our age." Ran replied.

"Their mindset is below ours."

"Ah." She turned around in her rolling chair and faced the 15+ people in the room, all sitting on the tables, counters or chairs.

Tré had busied herself by tracing the tattoos on Law's arm and hand while he asked questions about the world of medicine. This was a tactic they'd all suffered in college, an act often referred to as 'pimping'. No one knew why it was called that, but...

"What is the name of the disease that causes-"

"Cutaneous Leishmaniasis!" Tré called out, smiling widely. Law covered her mouth with his hand and kept going.

"What causes lesions, numbness, ulcers in the mouth, nose and ears, and ultimately death?"

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

Everyone turned to the door where Ace stood, looking annoyed and tired. Ran rolled across the floor in her chair and opened the door.

"Portgaz-ya?"

Ace have a wave, "I was wondering if I could have a copy of the notes from today's case?"

Tré hopped up and rummaged trough her desk with a little grin. "Yep!" As she produced the requested folders, Vivan smiled seductively at Ace.

"Hey, Detective~" she purred. "Some of us were about to go out, wanna come?"

Ace seemed a tad surprised by the invitation but after a few seconds he gave the woman a lascivious grin. "Sure." /Sabo and Luffy will survive without me for a few hours./

Tré sighed with a smile. "Okay, olkay, V. I'll go too."

"Yay!"

...

Ran parked her yellow Vespa into the dark lot of Roppongi's newest nightclub, The Vault. It was a special kind of club, strictly VIP only on the top floors, while the first floor and basement were for civilians and opened to the public. Neon lights flashed from inside and the thumb of techno could be heard from behind closed doors.

Vivan threw her platinum blond hair back and licked her lips. "Oh, this is gonna be so much fun!" She squealed.

Tré walked in behind the woman, with Ran, Ace and surprisingly, Tré's brothers.

Ashford was off like a bullet, instantly seeking out his prey, and Tierney watched as his brother sidled up to a tall redhead at the bar, the two men hitting it off almost immediately.

"Someone's gonna get laid tonight." He mused as Tré rolled her eyes.

"That guy is gonna plow him through the wall." She walked off towards the bar where Ran had already set up a table and was clicking away at her laptop.

"What are you doing?" Tré asked.

Ran smiled. "Not much, my little buttercup. But I was going to send some offensive emails to Smoker."

"You won't have to." Law said, and Tré suddenly questioned his appearance. ("Someone has to babysit you all." was his response).

Smoker came down the stairs from the VIP room, where the door was cut off with a velvet rope. He caught sight of everyone and walked over.

"What brings you here?"

Vivan had a Cheshire grin on her face. "Needed a break from work."

"Yeah we do." Tré muttered. She perked up suddenly. "I LOVE THIS SONG!" Sebastian Ingrosso's "Lose My Mind" began thumping over the speakers and the girl took Vibian's offered hand, the two women vanishing into the throng of writhing dancers.

Law watched as Tierney began to harass Smoker, and he couldn't help but laugh (through the sound was drowned out by the music) as Smoker brandished the club-like weapon he always carried.

The bass vibrated through the floor and into Law's skin, and he etched as Vivian and Tré dance together, jumping around and laughing hysterically.

It was the first real smile Tré had had in a while, and Law suddenly recalled the hospital incident a few months ago, right after they'd been saved.

...

T_he first month after being kidnapped and assaulted was almost as hard as the time she had spent in Lucci's basement. The broken ribs had taken some time to heal, and she bore the scars of the hand and ankle cuffs that kept her held to the wall. _

_The first few nights in the hospital was rough; Tré woke up screaming so many times that she was moved to an empty hallway away from other patients, and eventually had be sedated. _

_Not that it stopped Law. _

_When the nurse rotation thinned out around 2AM, he'd sneak out of his room (which was fairly easy because most of the hospital staff ignored him since his injuries weren't as severe and he was given freedom to walk around) and head to the ICU. It was also a blessing that her room was right across from the elevator, so all he had to do was evade the gazes of passerby and he could slip into Tré's room unnoticed. _

_She was laying on her side, facing the window, her broken ribs patched up and exposed. She wasn't laying on that side, but given the twitch of her body, she still felt pain. _

_He was quiet, feet moving slowly so he didn't spook her or wake her up, and made his way to the other side of the bed. Her eyes were fluttering, moving in the REM pattern of sleep. Law dragged the IV pole over and sat in the plush chair next to the window. _

_/So many things could have gone wrong. I could have gotten killed, she would have been killed./ Law stared at Tre's face for a while, simply watching her sleep and playing various scenario's in his head. /She was scared for me to get involved, and I understand that. I was scared for her, that's why I did this. I was being serious; she's not just a friend or my assistant./ _

_Tré made a small noise and her brow furrowed. Law leaned over and clicked open the morphine drip, making sure she was getting enough. It was at the highest dosage possible for her amount of pain, but Law knew that the pain wasn't just physical. _

_He looked at his bandaged hands, eyes narrowing. They hurt like hell, but most of what he felt radiated out of his chest. He was trapped back then, subjected to hearing the agonized cries of Tré as she was cut. As Lucci touched her-_

_Law shut that thought process off. Thinking about it almost made him violent._

_Tré opened her eyes suddenly, and Law looked down as her vision cleared and their eyes met. _

_"Boss-?" Her voice was low and quiet. "What's wrong?" Law realized he must have looked angry because she recoiled a little. _

_"Go back to sleep," Tré shook her head. _

_"I'm not tired." She gave him a weird look. "What are you doing in here, won't you get in trouble?" Law shrugged, he didn't care. _

_"I wanted to see how you were holding up." _

_Tré looked at his hands for moment. "My IQ is 137. I have a Masters degree in forensic analysis, and a bachelor's degree in Entomology, plus several certifications in psychology." Her eyes turned glassy and she swiped the tears away with an angry swipe of her hand. "So why didn't I listen? Why'd I have to background research? Shouldn't I have been smart enough to stay away?" _

_Law smirked, "Because you have a thirst for knowledge. You always did. I remember those times when we had a project in school and you'd go crazy to make sure that you elaborated enough for everyone to understand. You're very animated, and you get excited easily." _

_Tre's eyes were heartbroken. "I almost got you killed!" _

_/Here we go./ Law mused. "Trézhon." _

_Said girl looked up, shocked that he'd use her whole name. "What?" _

_"I said that I did of my own volition. I had my reasons just like you did." _

_Tré lifted her gaze and sat up, wincing. "Say it. If it's worth saving me," the tears were thicker as her vision blurred. "Then say it." _

_He hesitated, a sudden twinge of anxiety fogging his mind. He knew that she knew already, but she needed reassurance. Law's gaze softened and he dropped the professional, careless attitude. He lifted her chin and stared into those fathomless indigo eyes of hers and smirked. _

_"I don't have to." He said, pushing her hair back behind her ears so that he could see her face. "We had this same discussion in highschool." _

_"That was because of Carla." Tré have him a minuscule smile, just a slight lift of her mouth. "She blackmailed me into confessing." _

_Law walked to the other side of the hospital bed and lay back. Tré was so tiny that fit easily, but when she tried to scoot over, he dragged her against his side. "Stop moving, you've broken three ribs and cracked another two." _

_"I wonder how Smoker feels about all this." Tré wondered aloud. Law face-vaulted. _

_"We had a nice conversation going and you bring him up. Why?" Tré suddenly smiled more. _

_"Because you make weird faces." Law rolled his eyes and watched as Soliel examined the bandages on his hand. "He's so...I can't think of the word-wound up?" _

_Law smirked and watched as she traced his tattoos again. "Smoker is so tight that if you stuck a lump of coal up his ass, in two weeks you'd have a diamond." _

_Tré beamed. "You rationalized emotion with a movie quote? That, that right there is why we're best friends." _

_"Because I quoted Ferris Bueller?" Law almost laughed, the girl was so easy to please. _

_Tré winced as she tried to turn, but a blast of pain shot through her ribcage and she actually made. Weak sobbing noise. Law sat up immediately and watched as blood, bright and scarlet, seeped trough the bandages. _

_"Medic-" Tré whined with a tight smile. _

_"This isn't Call of Duty, Tré." He walked over to the cabinet against the wall near the bathroom, and opened it, gray eyes scanning the shelves. He picked up the non-stick gauze and some medical tape, along with a roll of stickers that were tucked in the back. _

_The hospital gown was stained, and Law grabbed a fresh one from the pile by the door and walked back over to Tré, who was crying into her hands. _

_"It h-h-hurts-!" Law sat beside her in the chair after shifting her into her back, and tore open the package with his teeth. His technique was a little clumsy because his hands were so thickly wrapped with his own bandages, but with Tré's help, they managed to take the soiled dressing off. _

_/Jesus Christ./ Law stared at the injury. There were three small gashes from where the ribs had snapped through her skin, and the bruising was a deep red-purple with a darker ring of blue around the edge. The stitches had come loose, and Law frowned, he needed to tell someone to come fix it, he couldn't do it himself. _

_"Tré, I'm going to go get a nurse." _

_Tré looked alarmed, "No! Stay here, don't leave. I-I'll call a nurse, you go hide." _

_/'Hide'? What are we, six?/ Law handed Tré the little nurse-call button and dipped into the darkened corner by the bathroom, hidden in both shadow and the curtain. _

_A few moments later a nurse came in with a warm smile and she gave a soft laugh, "We're you trying to change it yourself, dear?" _

_Tré gave a weak nod and the nurse set to re-stitching the injury and redressing her wounds. After twenty minutes or so, she got up. _

_"Anything else dear? Would like something to eat, you didn't have dinner earlier?" _

_"No thank you, I'm just going to sleep for a while." She watched as the nurse packed up the supplies and went on her way. _

_Law came back and started messing with his IV, upping the morphine dosage a little. Tré had rolled into her good side, and Law guy back on the bed, watching as Tré started falling asleep. _

_"You're gonna be in trouble-" she yawned. Her eyes closed, her thick lashes like crescent moons against her skin. "So hide if you have to." _

_Law threaded their fingers together. "I will. Now sleep. That's a direct order as your boss." _

_"You and your silly direct orders." Tré's breathing evened out as sleep finally claimed her, and Law, feeling more at peace now than he had in a long time, allowed his own eyes to close. _


	4. Chapter 4

The bass from the song pounded into the surrounding ears like a jackhammer; loud, sharp and obnoxious. Ran groaned and sent a glare at the DJ, who (Ran was greatly amused) was being yelled at by Vivian.

Ran watched as Smoker quite literally popped out of nowhere, two drinks in hand. He set one in front of her and nodded to it.

"An apology for earlier."

Ran quirked a brow, "I'm gonna need you to be more specific."

Smoker glared at her, "Damn it, Copperhead, just drink the fucking thing." Ran meh'ed at him and went back to her laptop.

Tré had flounced over to the bar where her friends were, and Penguin saluted the woman. "Nice dance moves, boss-lady!" He grinned.

"Hahaha, most of that was Vivian, I just mimicked her." She fiddled with the hem of her trench coat. "She's mad because they won't play rave music."

Shachi rose an eyebrow, "Is she tired of the rap and hip-hop garbage?"

"You aren't?" Law and Ran asked together. The two turned as the bartender appeared, a busty, voluptuous redhead, and Tré felt a twinge of anxiety. She wasn't "pretty", and she didn't have much of a body, either. She wasn't short, the top of her head coming up to Law's chin, and she had a toned body from all those years of soccer in middle and highschool, but once the depression set in from her hearing disability, she'd stopped trying to look good. Her hair was perfect, always shiny and soft, but she never wore make up or clothes that showed any skin.

That was changing tonight.

Tré watched as Ran took a sip of her drink and set it down, and as Ashford walked off to the VIP room with the guy from earlier. Tierney's eyebrows shot up to his hairline.

"How does he do it...?" The blond wondered.

Tré smiled. "Charm." She looked over at Vivian, who came back with a sexy smirk on her face.

"I got my playlist synced and ready to go." She crooked her finger. "Someone dance with me!" Ace was out of his chair like it had caught fire, and the two were off into the throng of dancers down below as a fast-paced techno beat pulsed through the room.

"Here, Tré." Ran grimaced and handed the girl her glass; filled with some sort of fuchsia liquid and topped with two Maraschino cherries skewered on a toothpick. "You drink it."

Tré stared at the cup, and she glanced back to where the bartender had engaged Law in conversation. They weren't together, no, but Tré was absolutely in love, and she glared daggers at the busty woman for talking to the object of her affection.

With a huff, she downed the alcohol and took her coat off; revealing short denim shorts with a silver chain belt. The top she wore was a halter top of various shades of blue silk, from black to navy to aqua to white, and there were rhinestone black flats on her feet that sparkled in the light.

Ran stared. "Geez, Tré, where the hell did those come from?" She was smirking.

Tré hopped off her chair. "Vivian."

"Have fun, buttercup!" Ran waved.

...

Tré watched the array of bodies writhing in front of her in the blue-black light. The long, lean torsos undulating in front of Her on the dance floor made her hormones brighten, and a haze of dizzyness settled on her. She shook her head a little and looked up. They were all so hard, so perfect.

Oh, not that every man there was an Adonis, by any means. But just seeing all those thrashing bodies - shiny with sweat, moving as if in slow motion against the blinking lights - was captivating… sensual. The lights overhead cast a bonfire of raw heat over the scene and it ignited Tré from within.

Especially as a spiky-haired brunet came up to her with a smile, eyes glazed over with whatever drugs and/or alcohol he'd ingested.

"Wanna dance?" Wordlessly, Tré nodded, taking his hand and walking off into the darkened, flashing dance floor.

...

Ran flicked her gaze to her laptop and shut it, slipping it inside its case and then standing. "Well, friends, I'm out." She gave a mocking salute to Law and the others. "Tell Tré-oh." Her eyes flared slightly and she tugged on Tierney's arm.

"Look at your sister." Tierney and Law turned to where the hacker was pointing, and the former laughed out loud while the latter adopted a look of absolute bewilderment.

...

The man pulled Tré snugly against him, his hips rubbing seductively against the smaller body. Music pounded in Tré's ears as they moved against each other and Tré tossed her head back and gave herself over to the beat. The heat pressed in against her as their slick bodies slid together and she closed her eyes when she felt strong hands wrap around his waist and shift her to the side, pulling her away from the body she was pressed against.

Her eyes opened and she looked up.

"La~w."

He shushed her and dragged her back from the other man. "This one is with me."

The other man looked as though he were going to argue, his fists clenching, but Law was taller, stronger-looking. With a defeated groan, the other guy stalked off towards a group of scantily-clad women.

Tierney became concerned immediately, and he cupped Tre's face. "Honey-" Her eyes were dulled out, pupils blown. "Is she okay?"

Law shook his head, abruptly twisting his subordinate's arms behind her as her hands started wandering. "I'm taking her home. She ingested something."

Ryan's eyebrows crashed down and she turned to stare suspiciously at the glass that Tré had drank from. She picked it up, pulling the mini-Maglite pocket pen from her bag and illuminating the cup. The remnants of the vodka were grainy, and the inside of the glass was covered with an almost invisible chemical sheen.

/That bastard tried to drug me and I gave it to Tré?!/ she bagged the cup and stood. "I'll test it, see what it is."

Law sighed. "I can guess-" Tré had calmed slightly. "It's a sex drug, Ecstasy maybe."

Ran looked dangerous. /Smoker, you sonofabitch./ She knew the man hadn't meant to harm anyone, that he'd probably meant to drug her as a joke, but Ran didn't drink and had opened the alcohol off on Tré. "I'll check anyway."

Law nodded and with Tierney's help, he manhandled Tré out of the club and into his car across the street.

"What do we do with her?" Tierney's big-brother side was showing and he picked his sister up into his arms as Law helped open the car and arrange the seatbelt.

"I'll make sure she gets home," he said.

"Are you gonna stay with her? I'm not gonna be back until I find Ashford, and that could take hours." The tawny haired man said with a frown.

Law gave him a what-the-hell-do-you-think? sort of look and took his place in the drivers seat, "No, Tierney, I'm going to leave her home alone while she's drugged up and unconscious." He slammed the door as gunned the engine.

"Don't touch my sister!" Tierney yelled as the man drove away. But the yell turned into a chuckle as Law's hand, middle finger up, shot out of the window.

...

It took about half an hour to get to Tré's penthouse apartment in the heart of Tokyo, and Law was grateful for the heavy rainfall, because it diminished most people from coming out this late and he didn't want to rouse suspicion by being seen carrying an unconscious female in his arms.

The doorman recognized them and opened the door. "Evenin', Doc." He rose an eyebrow at Tré's limp form.

"She's fine, Satsuki-ya. She fell asleep in the car and I'm just taking her upstairs," the man accepted the explanation and waved them through, helping Law get the right elevator button pressed before aiding another couple who had come in.

Law looked at Tré's face and then at her clothes, wondering just what the blue fuck she'd been thinking when she went out with Vivian.

/This isn't like you./ he thought, walking out of the elevator and down the hallway to the door at the very end. /What exactly were you planning on doing tonight, Tré?/

He punched in the code on her door and walked in, bolting it, chaining it and resetting the alarm before moving trough the apartment and into her room.

It was the same as always, neat as a pin. Her bookshelf was in ABC order by author, her DVD/VHS shelf by title. Her bed was in the corner surrounded by large glass windows that showed the Tokyo skyline. Law shifted the girl into one arm as pulled the thick down comforter and silk navy sheet back before laying Tré down and covering her up.

Law sighed and pulled his hat off, running a hand trough his hair and walking up to one of the walls that was adorned with pictures. Highschool, college and shots from work were delicately framed, and Law examined the "Class of 2006" senior picture, with Tré in the third row. Her high IQ had allowed her to enter and graduate highschool at a younger age than normal, and she zoomed through college in only three years, graduating with his own 2009 class. She'd been 18, he'd been 21.

Law grabbed a photo album labeled "Silly" and cracked it open, almost snorting with laughter at the first picture. It was of Tierney, newly promoted, drunk as hell on the floor and naked (except for a pillow over his man parts), with doodles all over his skin.

For nearly two hours, Law went through almost all 25 albums, ranging from Tré's childhood, to a month ago for Ayane's 25th birthday.

Tré shifted in her sleep, making little noises and turning. Law froze as her eyes fluttered open as then shut again, her hands going up to rub her face.

"Tré?" Law out the album back and walked over to where she lay, trying to sit up. "How are you feeling?"

Tré have him a shrug, and she rubbed her eyes. "I need to shower." She got up, walking across her bedroom and opening the door to the bathroom.

"I'll be out there." Law motioned to the living room and Tré nodded, shutting the door with a click.

...

It was nearing 3AM when Tré exited the shower, Tré grabbed a fresh set of pajamas, a well-worn scrub top that was within a few washes of disintegration and a pair of black cotton girl-styled boxers.

She finger combed her hair and rubbed her eyes, walking out of her room and down the hallway to the living room, where Law stood in front of the TV, eyes narrowed and mouth moving as he quoted the episode of F•R•I•E•N•D•S.

He looked at her. "Feeling better?"

Tré walked over to him, cobalt eyes lit with something that had Law feeling a bit uneasy.

"Tré, what's-"

"Kiss me."

He blinked. "Tré, you're drugged. You have no idea-"

"I know exactly what I'm doing, Trafalgar."

He shook his hand, "No. Especially not when you're not going to even remember it."

She stepped closer. "Is it because we work together? Or because you don't-"

"If it happens-"

"Oh, it's going to happen."

He smirked. "Is it now."

"Yeah," without waiting for a reply, Tré marshaled what little comprehension she had and kissed him.

...

Law felt Tré's fingers find their way into his hair, tangling right into the raven locks as they both fell backwards onto the couch with a thud. She made a stifled 'mph!' noise as her back hit the cushions, and he couldn't help but be amused.

This shouldn't have been happening, but once it did, that was it.

As their kiss deepened, his heart and body started growing impatient, until the surge of lust he felt became too extreme that he finally couldn't take it anymore. He pulled his mouth away from hers, causing her to look up at him with a confused expression on her face. He smirked again. God, how he loved that slightly surprised, slightly lost look of hers. He leaned his head back down, brushing his lips against her ear, before he finally murmured in the most relaxed sounding voice he could muster:

"Are you sure?"

He lifted his head to read her expression. The confused look was already gone, replaced now with a serious one. He was expecting her to give him a nod, or maybe a simple 'yes' in response, but she didn't do either of those things. Instead, she reached up with both hands and cupped his cheeks, gently but firmly, taking him completely by surprise as she pulled him down into a warm, sensual kiss, one that immediately sent him over the edge and into a world of simmering, roiling, want.

But as he removed his lips from hers to instead press his mouth onto her neck, the warm, romantic feelings of affection quickly began to melt into a puddle of steaming lust. She tilted her head back, giving him better access to her neck as he pressed his lips hungrily against her skin, nipping teasingly. The pleasure-filled whine she let out encouraged him to continue kissing her neck, his hands working their way into her soft, newly washed hair. His heart was beating wildly inside his chest as the moment between them intensified.

Her hands tugged at his hoodie and she positively mewled as his mouth trailed feather-light kisses down the column of her neck. His hand went to the zipper on the side of her Little Mermaid scrub top, pulling it down and then lifted the material over her head, messing up her chocolate colored hair further. She started fumbling with his own shirt and she snarled silently when he refused to move.

"Laaaaw-" she growled at the smirk he gave her.

"You're still under the influence of illicit substances, therefore, we will regret this." He knew it had to stop, but part of him didn't want to. "We have work in the morning."

Tré adopted a very un-Tré-like grin. "I've wanted this since 12th grade." Her voice dropped an octave, "I want you."

/No, the drugs want me./ he thought. "Be that as it-Tré!" He pinned the woman's hands to the floor. She'd managed to slip her hand into his jeans for a second but he restrained her. "You need to be perfectly clear on this, because we are about to reach the point where I'm not going to have any self-control."

Tré may have weighed about 110 pounds, but she had strong leg muscles and was able to shift herself up and push the man back so that she was on top, and she fused their mouths together as her answer.

Law gave over to his hormones.


	5. Chapter 5

Ran walked into the living room, a steaming cup of coffee in her hand. She'd stayed up late, sending Smoker spam and chain letters, and messaging rude, mean and nearly vulgar texts. She smirked as she remembered the phone call he given her around dawn, which was shortly after everyone had left the club. Tré and Law had gone around 3:30AM, Ace and Vivian bolted drunkenly around 5, and she had left a bit before them, but had seen the duo walking (read: blundering) down the street.

Sunlight peeked through the violet drapes on her living room window, the sliding glass door led to a small balcony that held a clothesline, in which her pants and shirts floated gently in the breeze. The humidity had yet to occur, so Ran stepped outside and inhale the fresh morning air.

Walking back inside a few minutes later, she turned the WorldWide News on, and watched a story unfold about a case of some guy named George Zimmerman. She watched with boredom before turning the TV off altogether, and walked into her room to change for work. She was in the office today, so she pulled her slacks and button up on, slipping her feet into a pair of flats.

~BOKU WA IMA SAGASHI HEJIMETE~ Ran jumped as her phone went off, blasting a new favorite song of hers called "Hikari E". She sniffed in disdain as Smoker's name flashed across the screen.

She put the device to her ear with a roll of her eyes. "Yes?" She asked in a snarky tone.

Smoker's voice was slightly muddled, as though he'd just yawned. "We need everyone here as soon as possible. The K-9 unit is combing the woods for anything, and I need Tré to call her brothers to help us with those lights they have."

Ran rose an eyebrow. "So call her." She pulled a box of cereal out of the pantry and grabbed a handful.

"Tried. Her phone is off and so is Law's, so since you live right up the road, I want you to go over there and check on Tré and tell her to come in."

Chewing, Ran stared at the wall, brow furrowed. "Fine." She hung up without waiting for a response.

While she was curious as to both Law and Tré not having their phones on (though given the night's events, she had an idea why).

With a low growl, she slammed the cereal box back into the pantry and stalked out of her apartment. "This is all Smoker's fault."

...

Sunlight was warm on his skin, and Law turned away from the rays as they moved over his face. According to the clock on the wall, it was 6:37AM. Two and a half hours of sleep. He looked around, and his body froze as they glanced up. Law's eyes went wide for a few seconds before blinking. "Ran-ya." He looked down to where Tré was curled up against his chest, eyes fluttering with sleep. They were both shirtless (Tré still had her bra on), and Tre's pants were thrown across the room. Their legs were twisted together, and he had an arm around her, the other folded under his head like a pillow.

"How did you get in here?" He asked.

"Tré gave me a copy of her keys a long time ago in case I needed them." Ran's smile was slow and just a little bit evil. "Am I disturbing you, Doctor?"

Law felt a slight twinge of fear lick up his spine, which naturally pissed him the hell off. "I was viciously assaulted."

Ran pursed her lips and reached into her pocket, pulling her cellphone out. She snapped a picture (Law quickly looked down) and then tucked it away. "Sure doesn't look that way."

Law carefully disengaged himself from Tré, who curled up at the loss of warmth. After covering her with the throw blanket from the couch, he turned to Ran, who had a smug expression on her face.

"Give me the phone." Law said.

"No." She smirked. "This is blackmail material in case you do something that annoys me."

"Very well," Law gave a one-shoulder shrug. He grabbed his sweatshirt off of the couch. "But you know," he pulled the article of clothing over his head. "It would be a shame if someone, or multiple someone's were to find out about your feelings for Smoker-ya."

Ran blanched but covered it up. "What feelings?"

Law chuckled. "You like him." He looked at Tré, who was out like a light. "The way she likes me."

"You mean the way you like her."

Law rolled his eyes and assumed a bored expression. "What do you want, Ran-ya?"

The bronze-haired woman made a little "oh!" sound and then pulled out a file from her bag. "Case work. Smoker wants us all on the field today." She eyed Tré's sleeping form. "All of us."

Law nodded. "Give us an hour, I'll wake her up, get her...focused, and then we'll come in." Ran set the folder down, gave him a wry smile and left, laughing about the alleged "assault".

Law sighed deeply. "This is all Smoker-ya's fault."

...

Ace rolled out of bed, cursing silently as his phone (which was stuck on his face) vibrated over and over. He had two texts from Smoker, demanding he come into work as quickly as he could (though not as politely), and another from his brother Sabo (who woke up as dawn and went to work as early as possible), saying that he'd be working in the office today, tracing calls and emails from the Tanaka household.

Ace groaned. "Why do people have to kill other people? It's too damn troublesome!"

He got up and walked down the hall, passing Luffy's room (where the younger man was sprawled on the floor, snoring), and into the bathroom. He cranked the hot water on and waiting for it to go from a nuclear temperature to a lukewarm one. He stripped, got in, cleaned, and got out out in ten minutes, just as his phone beeped with a text from Law and Ran.

Law: Bring the files from the Tsuuda and Lucci cases today, I want to go over the similarities.

Ran: Fieldwork today.

Ace felt the dim pounding of a headache working into his frontal lobe and he sighed. He hated working on Saturdays...

...

Zoro took a sip of his coffee as he sat in the parking lot at the Tokyo Police Department. He'd spent most of the morning talking to Ayane, who was on the way to a doctor appointment, and reviewing the case files of the Tanaka murder.

"Was it as gruesome as Tré made it out to be?" Ayane's soft voice asked over the phone. Zoro knew that the younger woman had a penchant for blowing things out of proportion, but in this case the girl had been right.

"Yes, it was pretty nasty."

Ayane made a little noise of distaste and then sighed. "I hope they aren't working you all too hard." She clicked her tongue. "Smoker-san can be a little overbearing."

"That's an understatement." He checked his watch. "I've got to go, it's almost 7 o'clock."

"Be safe, and look out for Tré if you can. I love you."

Zoro smirked. "Love you too. Have fun at the doctor." Ayane snorted and laughed curtly.

"Yeah, sure."

They hung up, and Zoro sighed; he didn't want to work today...

...

Tré made a cute little whining noise and rolled over as Law nudged her with his foot. The brunette was curled up, and half of Law wanted to just leave her there to sleep off the remnants of the drugs, but then he'd have to explain why he'd stayed at her place, and then Tierney would be annoying and ask inappropriate questions, and Law really didn't want to deal with that.

"Tré," he sat down on the floor and poked her side. "Wake up."

"Nnmnnm." Tré twitched and snuggled against his leg. "Shhhhh!"

Law frowned. "Don't tell me to be quiet, get up."

Tré's eyes opened and she glared at the dark haired man. "Wha's goin' on...?"

"The Powers That Be demand that we go into work today," Law explained with a scowl. "So get up, get dressed, and let's go." Tré positively glowered. She sat up, wincing and rubbing her temples, while Law started messing with her Keurig coffee maker.

Tré stretched; her neck, shoulders and back cracking. Law chuckled from the kitchen. "You're out of shape."

Tré rolled her eyes and walked into her room. "I know!"

Law watched as the machine whirred and beeped, and he inhaled the fresh scent of hot coffee as it poured out and went into a cup. He rummaged through the other flavors and looked up as Tré cursed in the other room. He had an idea why she was annoyed, and it amused the hell out of him.

Moments later she returned, dressed in a "RENT: Will You Light My Candle?" shirt and jeans with black Nikes. Her hair was twisted into a loose side braid, and her bangs fell to frame her face.

Which currently had a "what the hell is wrong with you?" kind of look.

Law actually laughed. "I'm not sorry. I'm not, that's why I did it, solely for your facial expression."

Tré grabbed her phone, her keys, and walked out the door. "I hate you!" She called out from the hall, knowing it was an utter lie, even if she was joking.

Law shut the door, still smirking. "Liar." He twirled his keys around his finger and walked down the stairs. "You love me."

Tré glared at him, "Nope!"

Law eyed the small blemish on the side of her neck when she turned to look at him, and thought of the matching one on his collarbone. Suddenly he had moment of recollection, her mouth on his neck, trailing down his shoulder and chest, nipping playfully, hands gently running over his skin, going lower and lower until-

He twitched and dashed the thoughts away. He had to focus on work.

But shit, it felt good.

They walked out into the parking lot, where the sun had started to illuminate the city.

Time to solve murders.


End file.
